Double entrance doorways are commonplace in residential and business settings. Typically, one door in a double doorway remains closed and is referred to as the inactive leaf. The other door, commonly referred to as the active leaf, is used as the main entrance door. Generally, the mating edges of the active and inactive doors do not directly contact each other, but are separated by a slight gap. This gap, when exposed, provides room for tampering with the door latching mechanism.
An astragal's primary function is to cover the gap between double doors and thus secure the door latching mechanism. Typically, an astragal is attached along the exterior edge of the inactive door so as to cover the gap between the active and inactive door leaves.
FIG. 1 depicts a standard double door arrangement employing a prior art astragal 10. As shown, an astragal 10 is affixed to and runs the length of the inactive leaf 12. When the active leaf 14 is in the closed position, the astragal 10 functions to cover the gap between the active 14 and inactive 12 leaves so as to prevent tampering with the door latching mechanism.
FIG. 2 depicts a partial view of a typical inactive door leaf 12 with an attached astragal 10. As shown, the astragal 10 overlaps the edge of the inactive leaf 12. The overlap is large enough to bridge a gap that may exist between the inactive 12 and active 14 leaves when both are in the closed position. By bridging the gap between the door leaves, the astragal protects the latching mechanism from compromise.
A problem not addressed by the prior art is securing the astragal against unauthorized removal while also providing the flexibility for quick and easy authorized removal. One prior art method of attaching an astragal is to drill anchoring screws through the exterior face of the astragal. An astragal attached in this fashion serves the purpose of obstructing attempts to manipulate the latching mechanism between doors. However, an astragal attached with exposed anchoring screws could potentially be removed without authorization by unscrewing the exposed screws. Unauthorized removal of the astragal would leave the latching mechanism exposed to potential tampering.
Another prior art method of securing an astragal is to weld the astragal to the door. Generally, the welded bonds between the door and the astragal are permanent and cannot be broken. Although welding assures against unauthorized removal of the astragal, it also precludes the astragal from being removed so that the door can be reused without the astragal. Similar techniques of permanently affixing an astragal to the door also assure against unauthorized removal but likewise preclude authorized removal and subsequent reuse of the door without the astragal.
Accordingly, a primary goal of the present invention is to provide a security astragal that is secure against unauthorized removal but which permits authorized removal and subsequent reuse of the door without the astragal.